


While the Legends are Away...

by imademon



Category: Constantine (TV), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Abduction, Blood and Injury, Dragons, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, M/M, Mild Blood, Minor Violence, Picnics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-06-21 13:37:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15558897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imademon/pseuds/imademon
Summary: John Constantine and Gary Green go dragon hunting while the Legends are fighting Mallus. Things start off sweet, until Gary is taken by the dragon and John has to find him so they can defeat the dragon together.Involves action, some angst, and romance.





	While the Legends are Away...

They’d been staking out the island for hours now, and nothing. 

“Uhh, how long does it usually take dragons to show up?” Gary asked, shuffling his feet. 

“To be honest, mate, I’m not sure. You see, dragons haven’t exactly been a concern for the last few hundred years. But I have read enough to know they were known to make islands their home. Not the fun ones, of course. But the ones with cliffs and danger around every corner.” John replied, as Gary nodded to everything he said.

“Well we might as well eat the sandwiches I packed!” Gary said, sitting on the rocky ground and unpacking the bag he’d brought, “Peanut butter and jelly!” He said, handing a wrapped sandwich to John.

“Peanut butter and jelly...Thank you, Gary.” He smiled, sitting beside him. Gary smiled back.

“Yeah, I ran out of turkey and didn’t have time to get some.” Gary said.

“You don’t have to explain your choice in packed food to me, Gaz.” John said. That nickname didn’t belong to Gary. Not Gary Green. John regretted it as soon as he said it. The situation seemed so familiar; on a stakeout for some monster with a man he’d fallen for. They even had the same name. And so he slipped.

But Gary loved the apparent new nickname. He couldn’t contain his smile, and he didn’t want to. Dragons completely slipped his mind as their stakeout took shape into a romantic picnic. 

John found it necessary to distract himself from his troubled thoughts as best he could by rattling off dragon lore to Gary as his companion slowly finished his sandwich. 

“First off, it’s important to know that because there’s a variety of stories about these beasts from nearly every country in the world, all dating back hundreds of years, we have to be prepared for the unexpected. There are some things these tales have in common, though. Lore says dragons prefer to live in secluded places. There are sea dragons, and those who live in the mountains or caves. Most of what I’ve read says they must be dismembered to be defeated. Cuts to their flesh heals quick as a flash. And of course, speaking of flashes. There’s the fire.”

Gary was wide eyed as he listened to John speak. Mesmerized by a combination of fear and awe in the legends, and adoration for John and his knowledge. He didn’t even know what to say to all of this new information. 

“Oi, you got some jam on your cheek.” John said, breaking Gary’s trance.

“Oh! Sorry.” Gary said, chuckling awkwardly and trying to rub his face clean. 

John sat on his knees and shuffled closer to Gary.

“I’ve got it.” He licked his thumb and got rid of the smudge on Gary’s cheek with a smirk. He then leaned in for a kiss. It was quicker than their first. Just a peck, really. Lighthearted and as forgetful of the situation at hand as Gary had been. 

But reality never lets John Constantine get too far into security or any sense of bliss. And so just as they moved away from each other again, a rumble shook the ground they sat on. Then a hiss. Then a deep and fairly distant growl. John stumbled to his feet, remembering the danger at hand. And it was imminent. 

“What should I be doing?” Gary asked, reaching out for help up. He wondered if he’d made the wrong decision in following John to this place. 

John pulled him up and held both of Gary’s arms for a moment, looking into his eyes, concerned. He then put a finger to his lips as he surveyed the landscape around them. Hills and caves. The creature could come down from on high or creep out from one of 3 caves nearby. But from the way the ground shook and how clearly he could hear the hissing, John suspected it was lying in wait inside a cave. And he decided that it was better to find it first before it came for them. 

“Stay behind me, we’re going to look in the caves up there. The bastard’s gotta be in one of them.” He said, taking silent inventory of his weapons. 3 knives (the fourth he brought with Gary after he’d given him a quick but passable lesson in how to use it), and a sword. That along with the shoddy spells he’d skimmed before the trip would have to do. 

They walked slowly, trying their best not to disturb the pebbles they walked over and give themselves away. First cave, nothing but the soft cry of the wind through it. Second cave, the wind and the gentle whooshing in and out of the tide reaching the spot. As they left cave number two, Gary tapped John on the shoulder and pointed at his shoes.

“They’re wet and filled with stones,” he whispered, “can we stop so I can shake them out?” He asked. John nodded and let Gary hold onto his shoulder as he dumped pebbles out of his shoes. 

“You’re doing great, Gaz. Really you are.” John whispered. There it was again. The slip. He shuddered. The name was more ominous to him than the dragon’s low growl. Experience trumps tales found in books. And John only knew from stories how treacherous dragons were. But someone loving him had proven to be deadly on more than one occasion. But he said nothing, of course. And they pressed on to the next cave. It was a bit farther from where they were than cave two was to cave one and the shore was more uneven. Gary began holding onto John for stability. John couldn’t help smiling at it.

Then, another rumble and low growl. As the ground shook Gary stumbled and wrenched John’s shoulder down, almost pulling him to the ground as well. Gary cried out in surprise and mild pain, and John felt his heart skip as he looked to the cave ahead. More rumbling.

This time the ground shaking and the growling went on for what seemed like eternity. And then the near deafening beating of wings as the creature emerged from the cave and took flight all at once. John was only able to put his hand around Gary’s forearm before the dragon descended and grabbed Gary’s shoulders in it’s claws. John lost his grip almost immediately as Gary was ripped away from him.

The dragon roared, and Gary and John knew only to scream as John saw the dragon with its prize flying toward the hills further into the island. 

John collapsed onto the ground, out of breath and vision blurred.

“Gary….Gary...Gary.” He said over and over, like a mantra. As if saying his name instead of the second hand sobriquet he’d used last would set Gary’s fortune right again and bring him back as if nothing had happened. Nevertheless, John still found himself completely alone on the shore.

Meanwhile, Gary had blacked out in the sky and woke up on a small hill surrounded by others much larger; it was a natural fortress. But the hills didn’t appear to be impenetrable. And he believed in John Constantine. He had to. But even if his life and sanity didn’t depend on it, he would have believed in him. 

Maybe Gary wouldn’t have had such faith if he knew John had just recently added him to the list of those he imagined dying all because of him. Or maybe he’d shrug it off and try to comfort the world weary warlock.

He figured he just had to bide his time and stay alive til John could get to him and they could take the dragon together. He could do it, he thought, as long as he was the backup. He sat up slowly, looking around to see the dragon asleep nearly at the bottom of the hill. He checked to make sure he wasn’t badly injured; he only found several scrapes and bruises, but nothing that would seriously impede him going forward. The worst of his injuries were puncture wounds in his shoulders. Painful, bloody, but not deadly. 

It was now a waiting game. He could do that. He just had to have faith.

Just having made it to the top of the cliff that harbored the shoreside caves, John was trying not to panic. He’d saved himself and others before. But he’d also lost quite a few more. 

“Not a chance, John Constantine. You’re not going to let him down. Not this one.” He said to himself. This time it had to be different if he ever were to dare to be able to move on with his life. 

It was getting dark. John didn’t know how safe it was to traverse the hills and valleys in the dead of night, but he felt sure it was safer than lying hurt in the captivity of a dragon through the night. So he went on, stumbling in the blackness. 

He didn’t have any way of knowing which way to go or how far might be too far, but after walking, climbing, and sliding, for what he suspected was about 4 hours he felt the best thing to do was rest a while. Not sleep. He couldn’t risk letting himself close his eyes. He couldn’t give up. He just needed to regain some of his strength. He rested on the crest of a hill, looking out at nothing but shadows and stars for quite some time. He thought, but couldn’t be sure in his exhaustion, that he heard the dragon roaring in the distance. And then he saw smoke. 

The dragon had woken just at dusk, seemingly to check to be sure its captive was still in his place. And there Gary was, where it’d left him, shivering and forcing himself to wake up every time he drifted into sleep. The dragon sniffed and pushed at him, but did nothing more. It turned and let out a hiss, fire then rumbling from its gaping mouth into a small group of trees that now burned.

Seeing this, John felt rejuvenated and jumped back on his feet.

“I’m coming, Gar. I’m coming for ya.” He said, heading toward the signal going into the sky.

Later, John wouldn’t have been able to tell anyone how exactly he made it over some of the higher and more treacherous hills, except to show the scarring on his hands, elbows, and knees. That is, if John would’ve been willing to admit any of this had happened to the Legends when they’d gotten back. As he continued toward Gary and the beast of the island, he fell into a kind of trance. Only aware of the smoke rising and his place in relation to it. He hummed some old strange tune he’d heard long ago, befitting this journey. He hoped it would all work out in his favor. Just this once.

When dawn broke, Gary stirred from a light sleep to see the dragon taking flight. And John, only a few miles away now, tried to keep himself hidden while being momentarily glad for confirmation of where he was headed. That relief was short lived, though, as he feared that the dragon only left the spot it’d been all night because its captive had become its meal. John tried to put it out of his head as he continued onward. 

Gary, now alone, stood for the first time since the night before and got his bearings. He walked in circles to see if his legs were all right and was deeply relieved that there was only some mild pain when putting weight on his legs and feet. He could get out of there. He checked the rest of his wounds once more, and patted his jacket and pants to see if he still had the knife John had given him. It was gone, likely having fallen out when he was in the sky. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. 

“It’s okay. When Constantine finds me he’s got some to spare. I’ll be okay. You got this Gary.” He said, in a bit more than a whisper. He then straightened his clothes as best he could and sat back down, doing his best to keep an eye on his surroundings.

John was sure the hill he was scaling ought to be the last before getting to Gary. His legs shook from fatigue and hopefulness hiding fear. When he reached the top his legs gave out as he fell to his hands and knees and let out a sigh that ended in a soft cry. Looking down he saw a smaller hill just beyond a dip in the landscape. And there he was. His Gary. 

His Gary, who, facing the other way, didn’t turn to see him til he heard a commotion and found him tumbling down the side of the hill he’d been on. John had fully intended to get down the hill the proper way. But his legs, already shaking before finding Gary, had fully given out and he let gravity do its work.

Gary got up and let out a soft yelp, reaching forward and worried. Then, checking the sky for shadows and wings, got up and slid down his own hill to meet John at the bottom. They both collapsed in front of each other, and looking up, surveyed their faces. 

“You found me!” Gary said, breathlessly, and then cleared his throat to speak more clearly as they helped each other to their feet, “are you okay?”

“Always, luv. And what’re you asking me for? You’re the one that got nicked by a bloody dragon!” He pulled at the neck of Gary’s shirt, having seen the blood. Gary pulled back a moment and inhaled sharply.

“Oh, that’s the worst of it. Once I get it cleaned up and bandaged it’ll heal quickly, I’m sure.” He smiled, searching John’s eyes and smiling at the relief he saw. 

John nodded and pulled Gary into the softest hug he could manage, which still made Gary wince. John pulled away and grinned, letting out a short chuckle. Then, quicker than he’d come down that hill, the dragon appeared once again in the sky. 

“This time we’re ready, right?” Gary said. 

“Yeah, sure are.” John said, cocking his head a bit to the side.

“Wait! My knife! I lost my knife!” Gary cried, reaching his hand out for a replacement. John handed him one of his others, motioned behind him. 

“Get back, Gary. I’ll go at it first and you follow my lead.” John said, just as the creature landed and let out a vicious screech. 

Just as he said he would, John rushed at the dragon, ducking to pierce its belly. He jabbed at it just before being knocked to the ground, and the knife remained stuck in the legendary being’s leathery skin. 

It was Gary’s turn, and he too ran at the dragon. He slashed at its neck and the dragon swung to the side, letting out a cry and stumbling. John, still beneath the thing saw an opportunity. He unsheathed his sword and made another slash to its neck. This one much larger than the first, which was already healing. He pulled the sword back and, before the dragon had time to recover itself, slashed at its neck again. This time the dragon fell, with John escaping from under it just before it hit the ground. 

Gary grabbed the sword from John, who was struggling to get to his feet as fast as he could, and let out a loud and heaving cry from deep in his chest. Swinging down hard and fast, he cut the monsters head from its body, and as soon as the head fell to the ground, so did the sword. 

John pulled himself up, first resting on his knees a moment and then getting to his feet while Gary stood staring at his bloody hands as they shook. 

“I’m impressed. That was….impressive.” John Constantine, ever a man of profound statements, said. He never doubted Gary, but was stunned at this feat of bravery and heroism.

He took Gary’s hands in his and wiped some of the blood off on his own shirt. He was used to being covered in blood. 

"Amazing, really." John added.

“Th-thanks.” Gary smiled.

John smiled back and put his hands on Gary’s face, pressing his lips against Gary’s and breathing in the sweat and the blood. Gary pulled away.

“Now?” Gary said. Unsure if this was appropriate behavior. 

“Right. Of course. We need to dispose of this beast anyway. The bulk of it at least. I think a fire’ll do the trick.” John lit a group of matches and threw them to the dragon’s body, taking the head for proof and pulling Gary back from the flames. 

“This is the wildest trip I’ve ever been on.” Gary said, watching the creature burn.

John laughed.

“Trip. Right. Well, this fire’s lovely, don’t ya think?” John said, looking over to Gary and letting the dragon’s head fall. And we really should take a bit of time to rest before we head back to the shore and contact our ride home. 

“Yeah, yeah we should. Just for a bit. To be honest I think I need a snack bar or something when we find our things back on the shore. I think my blood sugar is dropping.” Gary responded.

“Oh of course, luv. You must be starving, and parched! But for now, this’ll have to do.” He said, taking Gary’s face in his hands again. Gary’s mouth opened into a wide grin. 

“Oh believe me, it is! And I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to get that bloody shirt off.” Gary said. 

“You’re right. And you might want to take yours off too. Say, why don’t we get a bit aways from this grim sight, eh? Back up the hill a bit, if you could make it.” John said, stepping back and pulling his shirt off.

“I think we can make it back up there now, leaning on each other if we have to, right?” Gary said, unbuttoning his own shirt and taking it off. Gently touching his raw shoulders, only slightly self-conscious about how it must look. 

“Don’t worry, I won’t grab at your shoulders. And if I do just slap me, eh?” John smirked.

“I think we’ve had enough violence for some time.” Gary said, as they made it up the smaller hill and sat down beside each other.

“Thank you.” Gary said, as John put his hands on his cheeks first, then began running his fingers through Gary’s hair. 

“Well I wasn’t gonna leave you here.” He said, “Listen, we can talk about what happened when we get back. But for right now let’s just...enjoy the fact that we’re alive and together, eh?” John said, trying to push back the melancholy and regret of almost having gotten the man he loved killed.

“Right, of course.” Gary said, embracing the moment and pressing his lips against John’s so that John’s lower lip was between his. It gave John chills, and he moved his hands down to Gary’s hips as they slowly laid themselves down, entangling themselves together. 

Every so often they’d touch a sore spot and one of them would let out a groan, then a laugh. And they let themselves get lost in the night.


End file.
